Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 73556 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73556 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
“Keep it cute?”
“I don’t make any waves. Penny doesn’t know I think she’s about as shallow as a beer cap used as a swimming pool.”
Roman nodded, then burst out laughing.
“Yeah… she’s somethin’. If Tony is happy though, I stay out of it.”
“Agreed. After I told him that, he simmered down and got to apologizin’. I need to check my horoscope, something I rarely do, but maybe I should because this week has been irritating as all get out. I’m hungry, Roman.” She sighed, and then watched a waiter walk past with a basket of assorted breads. “Now trust and believe, I will let you pay for this meal, if you want, even though I’m the one that asked you out.”
“Oh, I’m definitely taking care of the bill. Anyway, I was gonna beat you to the punch, but your brother applied pressure. The chemistry you believed was between us was real. I kept my mouth shut as a favor to him. I regretted makin’ that promise soon as you popped into the exam room at your place of business. I wanted to sop you up.” He winked, making her feel warm all over.
“Oh? You couldn’t resist a lady like me in scrubs? Too sexy to turn down?” She giggled. “Where’s our bread?” She started looking all around. “You know what? I haven’t had salmon in a long time. How is the salmon here?” She went on and on, bouncing from topic to topic, but he appeared thoroughly entertained.
Roman placed both hands on the table, then burst out laughing.
“You’re somethin’ special, Genesis. I think I like you.”
She grinned. “I think I like you, too.”
Roman kept his eyes on her, snapped his fingers, and within seconds someone was placing bread in a rattan basket at their table. It was like he ran the place.
It wasn’t long before they were diving into platters of food, sharing this and that. She had no idea how much stuff they’d ordered, but it was a lot. The table was full of remnants of what once was. Two lobster tails lay barren and picked to death, butter drippings all along the plate. Genesis was on her second glass of wine, and made certain, regardless of how good it was, to make it the last. After all, she was driving herself home. They talked about everything, from baseball to the latest movies, dental practices, and investments.
“…And then he said her name was Peg.”
Genesis burst out laughing.
“That’s not a politically correct joke. That was funny!” She felt good all over… a man who could make her laugh. An intelligent man. A man with swag and the gift of gab. A man who made her panties wetter than a slip and slide. Something must be wrong with him, ’cause ain’t no way. He doesn’t have any kids, either, so there’s no baby mama drama. His face is gorgeous. His body is wearin’ that damn suit. He smells absolutely delicious. He’s financially literate, and stable. Hell, he works for Goldman Sachs. Can’t get more financially literate than that. Has his own place and from the looks of things, is romantic. This is too good to be true. If it’s too good to be true though, it probably is. There’s a catch. There must be a catch.
“So, when was the last time you were in a relationship?” he asked, throwing her off guard.
“I didn’t expect to discuss anything like that.”
“And what did we just say about expectations?”
“Yup. You’re right. My words came back to bite me, huh?”
“I’m not trying to use your words against you—just, you know,” he shrugged, “tryna find out more about you. The past is a good way to see how far someone has come.”
“Well, aren’t you a philosopher? My last relationship was about a year and a half ago. He is a professional singer. He does opening acts for a lot of big names. Great guy with a lovely voice.”
“Okay, so what happened?”
“He wasn’t cheating or anything like that. We just didn’t mesh well. Weren’t on the same page. Nice guy, just not for me. We didn’t have a lot of the same interests, either.”
“And what were some of your interests that clashed with his?”
“I like to go out and do things with friends and family. He needs big entourages, lights, and cameras. I like quiet times, just the two of us. He could barely stand times like that. Always had to be on the go. He was just always performing in some way,” she said. “I don’t like always feeling ‘on.’ It felt like I had to perform sometimes, too. Show him in a good light. That’s not me. I just wanted to be myself.” He nodded in understanding. “I wanted a true legal commitment; he saw marriage as only a piece of paper. Said he was doing everything for me that a husband would, and I couldn’t disagree. But I wanted that shit in writing. When I look back on it, it was ridiculous. It was like I just had something to prove. I wouldn’t have been happy married to that man. We weren’t in sync. Now? I don’t care.” She shrugged.